The Secret Lives of 7 Well-Known Meds

Most people think of medicines as single-role actors -- one-trick ponies with clearly defined uses.

But some pills can't be so easily pigeonholed. Few would guess, for example, that the erectile dysfunction drug Viagra is also used by doctors to help increase blood flow to other parts of the body when needed, possibly sparing patients the horror of amputation. Or that a drug originally used to treat glaucoma is getting a second life as a means to thicker, more luscious eyelashes.

In many cases, the alternative uses are well-known in the medical community -- though perhaps not among the general public -- and are regularly exploited. For others, the off-label benefits may be less clear.

And while a November article in the journal Pharmacotherapy warned doctors to exercise more scrutiny in their prescription of drugs for purposes other than their primary intended use, it is clear that some of these MacGyvers of the pharmaceutical world are destined for double duty in the years to come.

Viagra

In a pinch, doctors may look to the erectile dysfunction drug Viagra as a means to increase blood flow to tissues in the body that need it. Such was the case when 20-year-old college sophomore Jamie Schanbaum suffered meningitis and, shortly thereafter, an infection that threatened her fingers and legs.

Dr. Peter Lin, Schanbaum's doctor, who treated her at St. Joseph's hospital outside of Houston, said his team used the drug to see if it would be possible to spare Schanbaum the extensive amputations some physicians suggested as the only way to control the gangrene in her arms and legs.

"Viagra stimulates blood flow," Lin told ABCNews.com. "We wanted as much blood flow to get to the damaged area as possible."

Botox

It's a drug whose name has become synonymous with cosmetic treatment. But many forget that Botox -- the most commonly known brand name for botulinum toxin type A -- had its humble start in the treatment of crossed eyes and spastic conditions as early as the 1970s.

However, the reputation of the drug changed forever in 2002 when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved it for the treatment of facial frown lines. Injecting the solution into the faces of their patients, doctors could selectively paralyze certain muscles implicated in the formation of wrinkles.

Now, doctors are further stretching the drug's usefulness by treating patients who experience certain type of hyperlacrimation -- in other words, the overproduction of tears in response to certain stimuli.

For 58-year-old Patricia Webster of Maidstone, England, who had been living with the degenerative nerve condition known as Guillain-Barre syndrome, the occasional shot straight into her tear ducts means freedom from an embarrassing symptom of her condition in which she would appear to cry whenever she ate.

"For the last 18 years of my life I've done nothing, and the embarrassment of my eyes was a major part of this," she told ABCNews.com.

Still, even Webster was skeptical when her doctor first offered up the treatment.

Latisse

The effects of the medication were so pronounced, in fact, that the FDA recently approved the drug for this cosmetic use. Allergan, the company that manufactures the glaucoma drug known as Lumigan, rebranded it under the new name Latisse.

Dr. Scott Whitcup, Allergan's executive vice president of research and development, told ABCNews.com that researchers noted the eyelash-enhancing side effects of the eye drops during the Phase 3 trials for the drug.

"At the time, we began thinking of developing Lumigan as a treatment for eyelash growth," Whitcup said.

Essentially, the drug works by keeping hairs in their growth phase -- the phase during which they become longer, thicker and darker. Of course, the eyelash-enhancing effects of Latisse are not permanent once the drug is discontinued. And at $120 for a 30-day supply, Latisse is not cheap. But it is still far cheaper (and most likely less risky) than surgical procedures designed to achieve the same end.

Robitussin

Strange but true: When it comes to trying to get pregnant, some women look to a remedy more associated with coughs and colds than conception. That remedy is Robitussin.

So far there is no reliable evidence to show that the syrup does much, if anything, to increase the odds of a woman getting pregnant. The theory, however, is that in much the same way the drug can thin the mucus in your nose and throat, it may also thin the cervical mucus. Thinner cervical mucus means that sperm may have an easier time making it into the uterus to fertilize a waiting egg.

While proof of this remedy remains elusive, it is far from the only home-grown cure that many women look to when it comes to getting pregnant. Some aspiring moms try dietary changes, for example. But because so many factors contribute to a woman's ability to conceive, doctors warn that changing any one variable is not likely to have a huge overall effect on the chances of pregnancy.

Phosphatidylcholine

Among the plethora of drugs used in the cosmetic realm, it's a safe bet that few would recognize the name phosphatidylcholine. But in many clinics around the world, this soybean-based, FDA-approved treatment to break down fat in the blood is also being injected under the more familiar names lipostabil or lipodissolve as a surgery-free fat buster.

That's not to say, however, that the treatment is safe. Indeed, cosmetic surgeons and dermatologists agree that these injections should be avoided by consumers shopping around for a slimmer look.

"There is really not a single scientific study to show that it definitely works," Dr. Malcolm Roth, director of plastic surgery at Maimondes Medical Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., told ABCNews.com. "Are these chemicals safe when injected into fat? And what happens to this fat? Where does it go?"

Despite the dangers of the procedure, however, the growing number of clinics offering the treatment is a testament to its continued legal status in the United States. Still, the procedure is banned for cosmetic purposes in Brazil and other countries.

"Most physicians performing this procedure do not have training in liposuction, plastic surgery or dermatologic surgery," said Dr. Carolyn Jacob, a board-certified dermatologist in Chicago. "Even dentists are doing it."

In the late 1970s, a group of psychiatrists found that the drug had an effect on levels of serotonin, a brain chemical that is known to regulate mood. Indeed, before ecstasy was made illegal in 1985, some psychotherapists were giving the drug to patients, citing its usefulness as an effective therapeutic tool.

In 2004, despite the illegality of the drug, the U.S. government authorized a human study of its potential to help those suffering from the emotional scars of a traumatic event.

However, while some patients in the study felt that they had benefited from the drug, today it remains on the government's list of Schedule I drugs -- a classification that includes heroin, cocaine and methamphetamines. Still, some hope that the restrictions on the drug's use may one day be lifted to help soldiers returning from war deal with psychological trauma.

Thalidomide

Few drugs have as controversial a reputation as thalidomide. First marketed in 1957 to stave off morning sickness in pregnant women, the drug was soon found to be linked with severe birth defects ranging from cleft palates to missing and abnormal limbs, spinal cord deformities and organ abnormalities.

Despite these tragic and high-profile outcomes, a small group of patients did benefit from using the drug -- those with a severe and debilitating leprosy-associated complication known as erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL).

Considering the small number of people today who live with leprosy, it may come as little surprise that the silver lining of this devastating drug remains relatively secret. And the World Health Organization still recommends against the use of the drug to treat the ravages of ENL due to birth defects.

Nonetheless, in 1998 the FDA cleared the drug's use for leprosy under strict supervision. Women who are candidates for receiving the drug are required to undergo pregnancy testing both before and during their treatment with the drug. Men using the drug are required to use a condom whenever they have sex with a woman, and all patients are limited to a 28-day supply and must see a doctor before getting more of the drug.

Reports from Emily Friedman, Radha Chitale and Bob Woodruff contributed to this report.